Improvement of Fresh-Cut Mangoes Preservation by Cold Plasma and Its Possible Mechanisms

Fresh-cut mangoes have received increasing demand due to their advantages of freshness, health, and convenience, but the quality deterioration during storage severely limited their consumption worldwide. In the present study, fresh-cut mangoes were treated with dielectric barrier discharge cold plasma (DBD-CP) and then stored at 25 °C for 48 h to simulate a shelf life. Results indicated that DBD-CP significantly inhibited the browning and microbial growth on fresh-cut mangoes. Thus, the appearance and firmness of DBD-CP-treated fresh-cut mangoes were well retained during storage, and it was probably associated with the inhibition of pectin methylesterase and polyphenol oxidase and the activation of peroxidase. Besides, DBD-CP significantly increased the crucial metabolic product content and key enzyme activities related to phenylpropanoid metabolism, which might enhance the disease and stress resistance of fresh-cut mangoes. Furthermore, proteomics results confirmed that DBD-CP probably reduced the accumulation of reactive oxygen species, increased the synthesis of secondary metabolite, and maintained the integrity of cell wall structure of fresh-cut mangoes by regulating the expressions of some key enzymes. The above results indicated that DBD-CP could be a promising preservation technology for extending the shelf life of fresh-cut mangoes.